Method of making connectors



June 30, 1942. R. D. \B.. .MOYNAHAN ET AL 2,288,013

METHOD OF 7 MAKING A CONNECTOR Filed Oct. 27, 1941 2 Sheets-Sh eet 1TNVENTbRS: Qog fi. Moynahan BY Eduard KID! Icher' June R. D. B. MOYNAHANETAL 2,238,013

7 METHOD OF MAKING. A CONNECTOR I I Filed Oct. 27, 1941 2. Sheets-Sheet-2 Fig.5.

'INVENTORS 13 1115. Moyna ha l1 4 BY Edwa rd m ilcher Patented June30, 1942 2,288,013 METHOD or MAKING CONNECTORS Roy D. B. Moynahan,Birmingham, and Edward K. Pilcher, Detroit, Mich., assignors to BohnAluminum & Brass Corporation, Detroit, Mich a corporation of MichiganApplicationoctober 27, 1941, SerialNo. 416,700

9 Claims. This invention relates to a method of making a connector, suchas a hinge, and aims to provide an efficient and economical method ofconstructing such members.

Connectors formed according to the present invention consist of twostrips or leaves, each of which has perforated segments which interfltto form a bore receiving a pin. Both of' these leaves are cut from asingle length of strip which is extruded with a perforation formed nearone edge thereof. Preferably the perforation extends through a beadwhich projects upwardly along oneedge of a relatively thin strip. Thestrip is then cut into'suitablelengths and segments are cut out from theperforated edg'e. Two leaves thus formed are then assembled togetherwith their perforated projections interfitting to tion of our copendingapplication Serial No. 377,534, filed February 5, 1941.

In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a strip, as ex- Itruded, from which one form of connecting members are fabricated.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a section of a strip after spaced segments havebeen cut from the perforated edge.

Fig.- 3 is a plan nector. v

Fig. 4 is a cross-section through a connector I illustrating certainmodifications.

form a continuous bore for the reception of the I pin.

' The connectors may be used as hinges, which case the pin becomes ahinge pin about which the two leaves rotate, but in other cases theconnectors may be used as fastening means to secure parts in fixedrelation. v

The method of the present invention provides for economical manufactureof connectors in which the perforated projections are homogeneouslyintegral with theleaf members, so that each leaf is a solid piece thatresists hinge fail-.- ure with the full yield strength of the material.The method is particularly advantageous in the producing of relativelylong'connectors, similar to hinges of the piano type, since theextrusion process can produce a long strip having an a curateperforation that would be impractical to produce by drilling or anyother-method.

Figs. 5 and 6 are cross-sections of leaves illustrating additionalmodifications.

Referring to the drawings more particularly the first step of the methodinvolves the extrusion of a relatively long strip IQ of material havinga perforation II formed near one edge during the extruding process. Thisstrip may be formed from any extrudable material, such as metals orplastics, a preferred material being a commercial form of aluminum or analloy of aluminum. The main body ID of the strip will in most cases bemade relatively thin, being' thick enough to give the requisite strengthwhile retaining lightness and making economical use of the amount ofmaterial used. To carry out these Since the connector leaves areori'ginally formed by an extrusion step, wide variations in shape anddesign are possible without additional expense, and hence structuralformations for reinforcement or other uses may be made integral (i. e.,homogeneous) with the leaves; The method is particularly adapted to theformation of the leaves from aluminum; resulting .in a hinge that isstrong yet light in weight.

These and further objectsand. advantages of the invention'will becomeapparent as the description proceeds.

While preferred methods of carrying out the invention are disclosedherein, it should be understood that .changes may be made in'the varioussteps, or in the arrangement of the steps, without departing from theinvention as herein set forthandclaimed. The .present applicationis inparta continuaobjects, a bead ll'preferably projects upwardly from oneface of the strip providing a uniform thickness of material surroundingthe perforation ll. Bead l2 merges into the top face of the strip 1through a curved fillet I; which provides a strong anchorage for thebead l2 to the plate, and at the same time gives a smooth stream-linedconstruction' having a pleasing I appearance and avoiding any crack thatmight collect dirt.

The next steps in the manufacture of the ,hinge involve dividing thestrip of Fig. 1 into suitable lengths and cutting away segments of theperfo- -rated edge, so as to leave perforated projections which may beinterfltted with those of a cooperating strip." These steps may becarried out in any preferred manner. as for example by first cutting thestrip into lengths and then placing them in a machine which mills outwide slots leaving the perforated projections l4. Obviously these stepsmay be carried out in any desired order, or they may be donesimultaneously by passing the strip of Fig. 1 through a machine designedto divided the strips into lengths and at "thesametime cut out segmentsso as to leave the perforated projections l4.

Two'of the leaf members or blanksthus prepared are then-aseembled withtheir perforated view of an-assembled con- 1 projections'interfitting soas to form a substantially continuous bore, and a pin I5 is inserted inthe bore. The pin is formed of a strong material such as steel,preferably of a corrosion-resisting type.

This method is particularly suitable for form- The leaves of'the hingethus formed may be attached by any suitable fastening means to the partsthat are to be hinged together, and they may rotate about the pin IS inthe well-known manner.

Piano-type-hinges made by this process are particularly useful onaircraft, where they may be used for wingflaps, doors, etc., and in someinstances they have been found to have from two to four times thestrength ofhinges previously used.

In other instances the device may be used as a fastener by securing oneleaf to one of the parts to be assembled, and the other leaf to anotherpart. The parts are then assembled with the projections M of the leavesinterfitted, and the pin I 5 inserted in the bore, thus fastening theparts together. This use of the device as a. fastener is of particularadvantage in assembling parts that have been separately fabricated, suchas the attachment to airplane wings of front edge sections, where one ofthe connectors is used at the top of the wing, and another is used atthe bottom of the wing, thus holding the parts in fixed relation to eachother.

A special benefit of the method is that since the leaves are formed byextruding they may be given practically any desired shape without anyappreciable increase in cost. Thus, as shown in Fig. 4, one face ofeach'leaf may'be rabetted as at l6 so that the part H to which the leafis attached may lie flush with the surface [8 of the lead, thus forminga smooth exposed surface.

Additonalfunctional parts, instead of being fabricated separately andthen. attached to the connector leaves, may be extruded as integralparts of the connector leaves; By way of example Fig, 4 shows the leaf19 having a flange 20 projecting at right angles thereto and having anenlarged reinforcing rib 21 at its edge, the flange and rib serving as areinforcement for the part to which the connector leaf is attached.

Fig. 5 shows another arrangement in which a bent flange 22 cooperateswith the leaf 19 to form a substantially channel-shaped element, thestiffening characteristics of this shape being well known.

Fig. 6 shows a leaf member l9 to which is attached a flange 23, and achannel 24 for use in attaching other devices.

These examples illustrate in a general way the wide variation of formsthat may be extruded integrally with the leaf strips, and those skilledin the art will readily understand that the blanks resulting from thefirst part of-theprocess can be used in a wide variety of circumstances.

It should be understood that the word connector as used in the appendedclaims comprises hinges as well as members used to secure parts togetherin fixed relation to each other.

1. The method of making a blank for a connector which comprises:extruding a length of segments interspaced; and inserting a pin into.

the bore formed by the alined perforations of the material in the formof a strip having a hollow bead along one edge, and cutting awaysections of the hollow beadto form a strip having perforated segmentsprojecting along one edge thereof.

2. The method of making a blank for a connector which comprises:extruding a length of material in the form of a strip having arelatively thin body with a. perforated bead formed along one edgethereof; and cutting off portions of the bead at spaced intervals toform a strip having perforated segments projecting along one edgethereof v -3. The method of making a blank for a connector whichcomprises: extruding a length of material in the form of a body portionhaving a hollow bead along one edge and a. structural member attached tothe body portion, and cutting away sections of the hollow head to formapin into the bore formed by the alined perforations.

5. The method of making a connector which comprises: extruding a lengthof aluminum material in the form of a strip having a body with aperforation near one edge thereof; cutting off segments of theperforated edge to leave perforated projections; cutting the stripintolengths forming leaves; assembling the leaves together with theirperforated segments interposed; and inserting a steel pin into the boreformed by the alined perforations.

6. The method offinaking a connector which comprises: extruding a lengthof material in the form of a strip having a relatively thin body with aperforated bead formed along one edge thereof; cutting off portions ofthe bead at spaced intervals to leave segments of the bead; cutting thestrip into lengths forming leaves; assembling the leaves together withtheir bead bead segments. 7. The. method of making a connector whichcomprises: extruding a 'length oi aluminum material in the form of yastrip having a relatively thin body with a perforated bead formed alongone edge thereof; cutting off portions of the bead at spaced intervalsto leave segments of the bead; cutting the strip into lengths formingleaves; assembling the leaves together with their head segmentsinterspaced; and inserting a steel pin into the bore formed by thealinedperforations of the bead segments. I

8. The method of making a connector which comprises:

'with their bead segments interspaced; and inserting .a steel pin intothe bore formed by the alined perforations of the bead segments.

9. The method of making a connector which extruding a length of aluminummaterial in the form of a strip having a relative- 'ly thin body with aperforated bead formed along comprises: extruding a length of aluminnzn5 segments.

strip irto lengths forming leaves; assembling the leaves together withtheir head segments interspaced; and inserting a steel pin into the boreformed by the alined perforations of the bead ROY D. B. MOYNAHAN. EDWARDK. PILCHER.

